Going and Coming (ići, doći, otići) | Serbian Grammar

English go and come do not map onto just two Serbian words. Ићи presents motion as an activity, journey, habit, or plan; perfective доћи presents arrival at a destination or reference point; perfective отићи presents departure from a place. The choice tells the listener which part of the path matters.

The three core present paradigms

Person	ићи — go, be going	доћи — arrive/come	отићи — leave/go away
ја	идем	дођем	одем
ти	идеш	дођеш	одеш
он/она/оно	иде	дође	оде
ми	идемо	дођемо	одемо
ви/Ви	идете	дођете	одете
они/оне/она	иду	дођу	оду

The forms дођем and дођу keep Serbian ђ; одем has no ђ. Although дођем and одем look like present-tense forms, these verbs are perfective, so they normally refer to a completed arrival or departure in a future, conditional, or repeated frame.

Идем у продавницу; треба ли ти нешто?

I'm going to the store; do you need anything?

Кад дођеш кући, пошаљи ми поруку.

When you get home, send me a message.

Ако одемо сада, стићи ћемо пре гужве.

If we leave now, we'll arrive before the traffic gets heavy.

Ићи: the journey, habit, or current movement

Imperfective ићи answers where someone is going, whether a journey is underway, or what trip is habitual. It does not guarantee arrival.

Сваког јутра идем пешке до посла.

Every morning I walk to work.

Где идете после предавања?

Where are you going after the lecture?

Context supplies English progressive or simple present meaning: идем can mean “I am going” now or “I go” habitually. Serbian aspect, adverbs, and context carry distinctions that English tense labels alone cannot predict.

Past ићи uses irregular l-participles ишао, ишла, ишло, ишли, ишле, ишла.

Ишла сам аутобусом јер је падала киша.

I went by bus because it was raining. (female speaker)

The ordinary future is written ићи ћу, ићи ћеш.... Verbs ending in -ћи do not fuse with ћу the way many -ти infinitives do.

Доћи: arrival at the reference point

Perfective доћи focuses on reaching the destination. It often translates come, especially when the destination is where the speaker or listener is, but it can translate get to or arrive as well.

Можеш ли да дођеш код мене око седам?

Can you come to my place around seven?

Воз је дошао са двадесет минута закашњења.

The train arrived twenty minutes late.

Past forms are дошао, дошла, дошло, дошли, дошле, дошла. The auxiliary is a clitic and the l-participle agrees with the subject. Imperfective долазити covers an arrival in progress, repetition, or habit.

Док сам радила у центру, долазила сам на посао аутобусом.

While I worked downtown, I used to come to work by bus. (female speaker)

💡

Use ићи to look at the route, доћи to look at the endpoint, and отићи to look back at the point left behind. English often uses go for all three viewpoints.

Отићи: leaving and going away

Perfective отићи says that someone departs or goes away. The destination may be stated, but departure remains foregrounded.

Марко је отишао кући пре краја састанка.

Marko went home before the end of the meeting.

Морам да одем у банку пре него што се затвори.

I have to go to the bank before it closes.

Its past forms are отишао, отишла, отишло, отишли, отишле, отишла. Imperfective одлазити presents repeated or ongoing departures.

Петком обично одлазимо из канцеларије мало раније.

On Fridays we usually leave the office a little earlier.

A speaker who says Идем у банку announces the trip. Отишао сам у банку reports leaving for the bank. Дошао сам у банку reports reaching it. These are different path perspectives, not free synonyms.

Destinations and origins

Movement into or onto a destination takes у/на + accusative; static location takes у/на + locative. A person's home or a professional takes код + genitive.

Идем у библиотеку, а после тога идем на тренинг.

I'm going to the library, and after that I'm going to practice.

После посла идемо код Ане на вечеру.

After work we're going to Ana's for dinner.

Origins usually use из + genitive from inside, са + genitive from a surface/event, and од + genitive from a person or reference point.

Управо сам дошао од лекара и сада идем кући.

I've just come from the doctor's, and now I'm going home. (male speaker)

Кући is a directional form meaning “homeward”; compare locative код куће, “at home.” See u and na: location vs direction for the case contrast.

Purpose, means, and further prefixes

Everyday Serbian commonly uses ићи + да + present for purpose. The infinitive is also standard, but да + present is the productive conversational baseline in much of Serbia.

Идем да купим хлеб пре него што почне утакмица.

I'm going to buy bread before the match starts.

For means of transport, Serbian can use the instrumental—ићи аутобусом, возом, колима—while verbs such as возити се or летети can be more specific. Пешке means “on foot.”

Prefixes create additional path meanings: ући “enter,” изаћи “exit,” прићи “approach,” прећи “cross,” and проћи “pass through/by.” They do more than turn an imperfective verb into a generic perfective one; each profiles a path. The prefixed directional verbs page develops that system.

Уђите слободно; врата нису закључана.

Come in; the door isn't locked.

Questions and negation

Не идем данас на тренинг јер ме боли колено.

I'm not going to practice today because my knee hurts.

Јеси ли већ отишао или си још у канцеларији?

Have you left already, or are you still at the office? (male addressee)

Notice the auxiliary before ли in the yes/no question, and its second-position placement in the alternative clause. Negation is separate in не идем, but fused with the present of бити in ниси отишао.

Practice Tasks

Task 1: Choose the path viewpoint

Translate “I am going to Ana's now,” “Come to Ana's at eight,” and “He left Ana's early.” Choose ићи, доћи, or отићи, then state whether the journey, arrival, or departure is central.

Task 2: Change person, tense, and case

Change Она иде у школу into first-person plural present, feminine singular past, and future. Then contrast destination у школу with location у школи.

Common Mistakes

❌ Сутра дођем у Београд у подне.

Incorrect as a neutral main-clause future — perfective present дођем needs a future, conditional, or repeated frame.

✅ Сутра ћу доћи у Београд у подне.

Tomorrow I'll arrive in Belgrade at noon.

❌ Идем у школи по сестру.

Incorrect — movement toward a destination requires accusative у школу, not locative у школи.

✅ Идем у школу по сестру.

I'm going to the school to pick up my sister.

❌ Јуче сам идео пешке до станице.

Incorrect — the masculine past form of ићи is irregular: ишао.

✅ Јуче сам ишао пешке до станице.

Yesterday I walked to the station. (male speaker)

❌ Ана је дошао касно јер је пропустила аутобус.

Incorrect — the l-participle must agree with feminine Ана.

✅ Ана је дошла касно јер је пропустила аутобус.

Ana arrived late because she missed the bus.

❌ Ићићу код баке после ручка.

Incorrect spelling — infinitives ending in -ћи remain separate from ћу.

✅ Ићи ћу код баке после ручка.

I'll go to Grandma's after lunch.

Key Takeaways

Ићи presents ongoing, habitual, or planned movement; доћи presents arrival; отићи presents departure.
Perfective доћи/отићи use present forms in future-oriented or bounded frames, not as ordinary present states.
Past ишао, дошао, отишао and their gender-number forms are irregular and must agree with the subject.
Destination у/на + accusative contrasts with location у/на + locative.

Now practice Serbian

Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.

Start learning Serbian →